Coronavirus | Penn Today

Person putting a sign about COVID restrictions in the business place

What the U.S. economy will look like after the pandemic

How CDC data problems put the U.S. behind on the delta variant

PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel said the CDC’s decision to stop monitoring breakthrough COVID-19 infections was a mistake. “I’ve been arguing to do more monitoring, not less, and the CDC has been going in the wrong direction,” he said.

U.S. officials’ decision on COVID-19 booster shots baffles—and upsets—some scientists

Scott Hensley and Paul Offit of the Perelman School of Medicine weighed in on the authorization of COVID-19 booster shots. “Anyone who thinks that vaccinating Americans with a third dose is not going to come at the expense of getting the vaccine to other places in the world—if that’s what you think, you’re just kidding yourself,” Hensley said.

masked health care worker holding bottle of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

Penn study details robust T-cell response to mRNA COVID-19 vaccines

The results underline the importance of a second dose and include implications for booster shots.

COVID’s forgotten hero: The untold story of the scientist whose breakthrough made the vaccines possible

Vaccine technology developed by Drew Weissman and Katalin Karikó of the Perelman School of Medicine relies on a lipid delivery system created by Ian MacLachlan, a Canadian scientist.

‘This is a public health issue’: Can COVID-era music festivals ever be safe?

Mike Levy of the Perelman School of Medicine commented on the hazards of attending music festivals during the pandemic. “This isn’t about one’s personal risk of going to a dangerous outside transmission event and getting it,” he said. “Probably no one in these concerts is going to die, but they’re going to bring it home and someone’s grandparent is going to die.”

person with arms crossed in front of pond

Engineers create faster and cheaper COVID-19 testing with pencil lead

A new electrochemical COVID-19 test addresses the challenges of cost, time, and accuracy and uses electrodes made from graphite.

From free pizza to free tuition, colleges try everything to get students vaccinated

Emily Largent of the Perelman School of Medicine said college students are in an age group that has not prioritized COVID-19 vaccination and may be persuaded by incentive programs. "Incentives really work best when they're aimed at people who are not against being vaccinated, but they have for whatever reason not prioritized vaccination up until now," she said.

Can businesses require you to show your vaccine card?

Eric Feldman of the Law School said it is legal for businesses to require proof of vaccination from customers. However, he said, businesses are required to make reasonable accommodations for some. “If one has not been vaccinated because of one’s medical status, then they need to be accommodated in some way,” he said.

Wacky Texas COVID rules push mom to home-school for second year in a row

Genevieve Kanter of the Perelman School of Medicine commented on a Texas policy that does not require schools to require mask-wearing or to contact trace and alert parents when a child tests positive for COVID-19. “It certainly seems as if the [masking] decision is being made for reasons other than public health,” she said. “These children, even if they remain asymptomatic, will be vectors for COVID, infecting their (vaccinated or not) parents, parents’ coworkers and friends, grandparents.”

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